He started his career as a gospel singer touring Texas with The Spiritual Five in the 1950's but started gigging solo in Dallas in local R&B clubs with the bands of Big Bo Thomas and Frank Shelton. By the mid 60's he was recording soulful rock n roll with an emphasis on bluesy balladry. Z.Z Hill's style is somewhat reminiscent of other southern blues & soul singers like Percy Sledge, Bobby Bland and his biggest influence B.B King, which is supposedly where he got the idea to shorten his name to Z.Z.
He started hitting his commercial stride with early 70's hits including Chokin' Kind, Don't Make Me Pay For His Mistakes, and Faithful and True. While signed to Columbia, "Love Is So Good When You're Stealing It," spent 18 weeks on the Billboard R&B chart in the summer of 1977. Cheatin' In The Next Room was released in early 1982 and broke into the top 20 nationally, spending a total of 20 weeks on the charts.
His song Down Home Blues helped propel a 1982 album of the same name to stay on the Billboard soul album chart for nearly two years. Songs like "Someone Else Is Steppin In" and "Open House" have become R&B/Southern soul standards. During his career his songs were generally produced, arranged and/or provided by other talented writers and R&B legends including Lamont Dozier, Swamp Dogg, Dan Penn, Gary U.S Bonds, Denise LaSalle and Allen Toussaint.
Z. Z Hill's career was cut short when he died suddenly of a heart attack, after a road accident in 1984[ at the age of 48.
Loving You
z.z. hill Lyrics
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You know I never stopped needing you
You know I never stopped loving you
Without you I can't do a thing
Girl I wonder what went wrong, where we fell apart
From a love that was so strong, I wonder where our
Thoughts got lost, somewhere
Girl I just want to know where, how, and who are you loving now.
I need you now
We need to work it out somehow
'Cause I can see a part of me
With you is where I need to be
(I want to know why, where, who's gonna love you if I'm gone and girl I swear I'll hold on...)
You know I never stopped wanting you
You know I never stopped needing you
You know I never stopped loving you
...'Cause without you I can't do a thing
(Where, who's gonna love you if I'm gone. And girl I swear I'll hold on...)
You know I never stopped wanting you
You know I never stopped needing you
You know I never stopped loving you
...Without you I can't do a thing
I'm puzzled
My heart is slowly dying 'cause I don't know
Why I keep on trying when you're so cold
Why I keep on crying only Heaven knows
It's something deep inside I just can't let it go
I'm about to lose my mind, girl I can't sleep no more
Can't eat no more, girl I'm falling down
This is all because we had a falling out
I never meant to go that route
Won't you pull me from the pain I feel inside
Enough to make the strongest man break down and cry
Would you come and wipe these teardrops from my eyes
Losing you is like losing my mind, 'cause I need you in my life
I want to know...
(...Why, where, who's gonna love you if I'm gone, and girl I swear I'll hold on...)
You know I never stopped wanting you
You know I never stopped needing you
You know I never stopped loving you
... 'Cause without you I can't do a thing
(Where, who's gonna love you if I'm gone, and girl I swear I'll hold on...)
You know I never stopped wanting you
You know I never stopped needing you
You know I never stopped loving you
...Without you I can't do a thing
I've loved you all my life
And I've learned sometimes make sacrifice
Do whatever it takes
To make love turn around
You know I never stopped wanting you
You know I never stopped needing you
You know I never stopped loving you
Without you I can't do a thing
You know I never stopped wanting you
You know I never stopped needing you
You know I never stopped loving you
Without you I can't do a thing
Baby I can't live another day
Without you in my life won't be the same.
What will I do
(can't take the pain)
What will I do
(won't be the same)
What will I say
(girl things have changed)
Come back to me, come back to me baby.
Come back to me, come back to me baby.
Come back to me, come back to me baby...
The lyrics of Z.Z. Hill's song "Loving You #44" centers around the singer expressing his love and yearning for a woman who he believes is no longer with him. He sings about how he never stopped wanting, needing, and loving her. He wonders where they went wrong and what caused their love to fall apart. He is struggling to move on and is trying to pick himself up from off the ground. Despite everything, he knows that he needs her in his life and he is willing to make sacrifices to make their love work again. He begs her to come back to him and to wipe away his tears.
The song's lyrics capture the pain and desperation that comes with the end of a relationship that was once filled with love and hope. It shows that sometimes, when love is lost, it can be hard to move on and let go. The singer tries to make sense of his emotions and is hoping to find a way to make amends with the one he loves. The song's message is powerful and relatable, and it reminds listeners that love can be both beautiful and painful at the same time.
Line by Line Meaning
You know I never stopped wanting you
I have always wanted you and I still do.
You know I never stopped needing you
I have always needed you and I still do.
You know I never stopped loving you
I have always loved you and I still do.
Without you I can't do a thing
I am incomplete without you, I need you to function fully.
Girl I wonder what went wrong, where we fell apart
I am unsure about how our relationship broke down.
From a love that was so strong, I wonder where our
Our love used to be so strong but now it's gone.
Thoughts got lost, somewhere
We lost track of our thoughts and feelings for each other.
Twisted and now, I'm trying to pull myself from off the ground
Our relationship is messed up, and I am struggling to move on.
Girl I just want to know where, how, and who are you loving now.
I am curious and jealous about who you are seeing now.
I need you now
I need you back in my life right now.
We need to work it out somehow
We need to fix our relationship somehow.
'Cause I can see a part of me
I feel like I am incomplete without you.
With you is where I need to be
I want to be with you again.
(I want to know why, where, who's gonna love you if I'm gone and girl I swear I'll hold on...)
I want to know why you left me and who you are seeing now. I promise to hold on to you.
I'm puzzled
I am confused about our failed relationship.
My heart is slowly dying 'cause I don't know
My heart is hurting because I don't understand why we broke up.
Why I keep on trying when you're so cold
I don't understand why I am still trying when you are indifferent to me.
Why I keep on crying only Heaven knows
I don't know why I cry so much about our relationship.
It's something deep inside I just can't let it go
I have a deep love for you that I can't let go of.
I'm about to lose my mind, girl I can't sleep no more
I am struggling to cope without you, I can't sleep.
Can't eat no more, girl I'm falling down
I am losing control of my life without you.
This is all because we had a falling out
Our failed relationship is causing me to have this emotional breakdown.
I never meant to go that route
I didn't intend for us to break up.
Won't you pull me from the pain I feel inside
I want you to help me heal from the hurt of our relationship ending.
Enough to make the strongest man break down and cry
The pain of losing you is enough to break any man's resolve.
Would you come and wipe these teardrops from my eyes
I need you to comfort me and help me through this difficult time.
(...Why, where, who's gonna love you if I'm gone, and girl I swear I'll hold on...)
I want to know why you left me and who you are seeing now. I promise to hold on to you.
I've loved you all my life
I have loved you for as long as I can remember.
And I've learned sometimes make sacrifice
I have learned that sometimes you have to make sacrifices for love.
Do whatever it takes
I am willing to do whatever it takes to get you back.
To make love turn around
I want to fix our relationship and make it work again.
Baby I can't live another day
I can't continue living without you.
Without you in my life won't be the same.
My life won't be complete without you in it.
What will I do
I don't know how I can live without you.
(can't take the pain)
The pain of losing you is too much for me to bear.
What will I say
I don't know how to express my feelings about you leaving me.
(girl things have changed)
Our relationship has changed and I don't know how to fix it.
Come back to me, come back to me baby.
I want you to come back to me and be with me again.
Come back to me, come back to me baby.
I can't live without you, please come back to me.
Come back to me, come back to me baby...
I am pleading with you to come back to me.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: A FLOYD, LARRY JR ANTHONY, W. MORRIS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Sheila Rhodes
This one is from the days before he ZZ was popular with Malaco records. But this is one of my favorites. Remember my relatives jamming this and having those weekend parties and fish fry's. I wish those days would come back again.
Cynthia Brown
Sheila Rhodes mine too I love this song
Nils Knospe
👍